Charlottesville: Classic Progressivism Battles Neo-Progressivism

In a journalistic environment embracing fake news, prudence dictates approaching “mainstream media” reports with an appetizer of skepticism. Case in point: the reportage of recent events in Charlottesville was grossly misrepresented by the so-called “mainstream media.” It reported this as having been a gathering of “White Supremacists” (or “White Nationalists”) and “Ku Klux Klan” marchers – who were righteously confronted by “counter-protestors.” Actually, it was an intramural skirmish between competing Progressive groups, as we’ll see.

The media’s hyperventilating misrepresentations of President Trump’s statements about Charlottesville it became obvious that the Progressive media and its Democrat brethren were, and remain anxious to associate President Trump (and Conservatives generally) with the retrograde figures of White Supremacists. In all, a racially tinged political version of: “so when did you stop beating your wife?”

Had the Progressive media reported with honesty and historical context, it would have conveyed something along the lines of: “Hey, those KKK types may be retrogrades, but they’re our retrogrades!” And had they been completely above board, they would also have reported that the “Antifa” and “Black Lives Matter” “counter-protestors” are: “Likewise our retrogrades!”

Dear reader, at this point you may well be saying to yourself: “That’s crazy. What the heck is this guy Wigand talking about? Those groups hate each other. They are on opposite sides, and fighting with each other.” Read on …

The “White Supremacists” at the Charlotte march are the direct descendants of the pre-WWII Progressive movement (thus, we’ll refer to them as “Classic Progressives”). In fact, up until WWII, Progressivism and Fascism were political twins – perhaps not identical twins, but twins nevertheless. Both were overtly racist, embracing eugenics and its concepts of superior races. Each pursued consonant race-based population reduction: from Progressives we saw Planned Parenthood and its “Negro Project,” and from Fascists concentration camps.

The Ku Klux Klan began as creature of the Democrat Party in the post-Civil War era, and remained such into the 1960’s – and served as a terroristic enforcement arm for the Democrat – Progressive White Supremacists (ironically, thus the KKK was in many respects the KKK the Reconstruction era’s “Antifa”). The first Progressive President, Democrat Woodrow Wilson, segregated the formerly integrated federal government. Progressives of that era – and ever since – have lauded large, dominant and domineering central government, a model diametrically opposed by our Constitution – but one also pursued by Fascists. The second Progressive President, Democrat FDR, succeeded in initiating an ever growing and more powerful “state” through his “New Deal” – much to the approval of Fascist leader Mussolini in Italy. Indeed, we all know how Fascists view government power and scope. Overall, FDR and the Fascists of his era were essentially sharing Collectivist “best practices.” Unfortunately, from the standpoint of the Classic Progressive leaders, the end of WWII brought exposure of the National Socialists’ (Nazi) concentration camps and their eugenics-inspired genocide, and so forced eugenics out of fashion (at least in polite company).

However, Collectivists of all stripes, including those of the Progressive branch, never lost their ardor for achieving an all-powerful global government, administered by an elite of superior human beings, lording over the inferior masses beneath. For their own good, of course. Even if they are too stupid to appreciate what their betters were doing for them. But then again, from the Progressive standpoint, what else would you expect from “deplorables?”

So for the Progressive leaders, the question became how to continue the mission, now that open eugenics was off of the table? Strategic salvation came in the form of what today is referred to as “Cultural Marxism” – the purposeful and anarchistic deconstruction of Western culture and norms, executed so as to pave the way to build a secular utopia upon the societal rubble. Its originators and proponents included Antonio Gramsci, the Communist theorist from Italy; Germans like Herbert Marcuse and Theodor Adorno (of the “Frankfurt School” that eventually set up shop at Columbia University); and “American” Saul Alinsky of “Rules for Radicals” notoriety. (Progressivism and Communism are both branches of Collectivism, which remains a political philosophy and movement of international in scope and menace.)

The post-WWII Progressives – we’ll refer to them as “Neo-Progressives” – knew a good thing when they saw it, and have run with Cultural Marxism ever since. In doing so, they’ve shifted Progressivism’s emphasis from “White superiority” racism to a sort of “egalitarian racism.” That is, Progressives now pretend to believe that all races should be “equal,” and that they are the champions of the “minority” and “underprivileged” races – Blacks and the so-called Hispanics “race” in particular. (It deserves mention that Progressives’ “advocacy” for ever-multiplying categories of gender and sexual proclivities is also part of its Cultural Marxism strategy.) Neo-Progressivism is egalitarian in the sense that any “race” (but “White”) is welcomed aboard, so long as it will be useful toward advancing the agenda.

Note that both the Classic Progressives and Neo-Progressives always have, and always will categorize people by group, particularly by race – and so in are diametrically opposed to our founding principles, i.e., “all men are created equal, endowed by their Creator …” The Neo-Progressive leadership – to this day almost exclusively comprised of elite-class Whites – for public purposes portrays “Whites” as the privileged boogeyman (presumably to gin-up and manipulate the other races). Thus, Neo-Progressives appear to embrace the opposite of the “White Supremacy” that their Classical Progressive forefathers embraced. Yet all the while Progressive leaders have embraced and pursued the same ultimate goal – that of a global, Godless utopia governed by a ruling elite of the “best and brightest” (i.e., them). While the White Supremacist “means to the ends” may have been flipped on its head – at least for public consumption – the ultimate goal has remained unaltered. Judging people by the color of their skin rather than the content of their individual character – and encouraging useful idiots to do likewise and herding them into proverbial Collectivist cattle cars of the victimhood train, is politically useful for Neo-Progressives.

“Antifa” and “Black Lives Matter” are Neo-Progressive cadres; while the KKK types are Classical Progressive cadres. The battles between them that we just witnessed in Charlotte are not unlike what occurred in the 1930’s – two forms of Collectivism duking it out for control – only today it’s an intramural squabble between two forms of Progressivism. Back in the 1930’s it was Fascism vs. Communism duking it out: in Germany and Italy Fascism controlled through WWII, while Communism prevailed in the USSR. After WWII, Communism (and its adolescent sibling, Socialism) prevailed in the USSR, China and much of Europe. Meanwhile, on this side of the Atlantic, before and after WWII, Progressivism continued its incremental but determined “fundamental transformation” advance through the United States of America.

Today’s street-level Neo-Progressives believe that they are “fighting” to achieve “social justice,” while street-level Classic Progressives believe that they are “fighting” to preserve and protect “White Supremacy.” Both cadres are useful idiots, unwittingly in service of their Progressive overlords, who are fomenting and manipulating them to inflame and irreparably divide our country. The Progressive leadership fully intends to wrench us from e pluribus unum – and ultimately intending to achieve the Cultural Marxists’ dream of societal deconstruction – in part through the racial balkanization of America. With America neutralized – neutered of our Founding – the Collectivist goal of global control will soon follow.

After which, the street-level folks will be encouraged to lock-arms in solidarity, as they become “equals” – indistinguishable human widgets under a new global governance regime. They will be full-fledged members of the new Progressive proletariat, wondering how they came to be impoverished and suppressed under a totalitarian order. Yet they’ll be told that they are now enjoying the benefits of “social justice.” While they will deserve that fate, the rest of us will not.

Mr. Wigand is the author of the book “Communiqués From the Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy,” which is available on Amazon in both print and Kindle versions: Comments or questions for him may be sent to: communiques@use.startmail.com — he will make every effort to personally respond to every email (except for spam or trolls).